RUSHing to Judgment
by Wayne Wood

There are going to be those who agree with this article and those who do not. Whatever the case, I am going to give my perspective of the tenure of former Hoover High School football coach Rush Propst with the experience I had and knew of. Consider that this perspective will try to dwell on the positive things that Coach Propst did or tried to do. Enough has been hashed and re-hashed as to all the negative and there are those who will never let it go. He has moved on to another job in Georgia and Hoover has a new beginning in a fine person and coach in Josh Niblett.

First of all, my early connections with the Buccaneer program began in 1979 which was the halfway point of the career of Coach Bob Finley, who coached for the Berry Bucs (Hoover's first high school) from 1964-1994 and was the head football coach from 1968-1993. I came to know Coach Finley well for the last 15 years of his life and learned even more when I composed a book on his life a few years ago. He was an outstanding person and coach and was highly respectful to everyone including me.

Coach Finley died shortly before the 1994 season and Mike Thorsen took over as interim head coach for that year. In 1995, Coach Gerald Gann took over after coming from Homewood where his success included 3 trips to the state title game. It seemed his success would continue at Hoover after an 11-2 season but things didn't work out after 3 losing seasons of 1996-98. I will always consider Coach Gann a fine man, fine coach and great friend. He had a laid back personality and perhaps Hoover needed someone who was just the opposite at the time. Enter Rush Propst.

I had only heard of Rush before he came to Hoover and slowly learned of his career over time. I can truthfully and honestly say that Rush was always good and respectful to me from the first time I met him in 1999 and all through his entire time at Hoover until the most recent time I saw him in early 2008. Now I have to admit that some of his ways weren't parallel to most of my philosophies of teaching and coaching and our personalities were different but we got along well and we both wanted to win games.

I will always remember his first game coaching for Hoover was at Jess Lanier in Bessemer. During the warm-ups, he walked up to me and put his arm on my shoulder and expressed in a very encouraging way his deep appreciation for all the loyalty I'd given the program during the years.

Some of his methods were abrasive to some Hoover people but whether one liked it or not the Buccaneer program needed more than just a shot in the arm. It needed a positive kick in the head if it was going to be a success and it certainly worked.

There are some things Rush doesn't get much credit for and one of those is an insight into hiring great assistant coaches. There were so many responsible for the success of Hoover during his time. Also, he had great organizational skills in bringing certain aspects of the community together in support of the program. Of course, he's known for his game tenacity. Most of the credit should go to the players themselves and the support their families and friends gave them. Also one can't forget all of the different supporters of the school and the program through the years.

It is sufficient enough just to say that a record of seven straight trips to the state championship game from 2000-2006 should count especially when you consider winning it 5 times (2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005). However, it rarely gets notice but that era of success re-established a feeling of pride and achievement in football which was lacking for a long time. It goes without saying that sometimes matters get somewhat out of proper perspective which is true in many cases of long time success. Yet hundreds of young people in our Hoover community have a positive memory from their high school days both academically and athletically because of this experience of the championship efforts.

There were several young men who had the opportunity to continue playing on the college level but more importantly there were many more young men who benefited from the work experience they encountered playing under Rush Propst. Many of those have finished college and are in the work force of society.

There were other positive contributions which came from Rush's tenure such as hosting the national 7-on-7 tournament during the summer month of July. It has brought teams from states both regional and nation wide. Although some people disagree, Hoover branching out and playing a national powerhouse team from a state like Oklahoma or Ohio many miles away instead of just Alabama's border states has to be considered positive for both Hoover and the state as well.

The television coverage for a state title game is big but coverage of a big game during the regular season is great. Consider the 2005 game at Buccaneer Stadium which ESPN covered on their major network as we played Florida's Nease High which had highly recruited Tim Tebow who helped the Florida Gators win a national title the next year and he won the Heisman Trophy the following year. The MTV Two-A-Days series was controversial yet if the show had eliminated so much negative and needless off-the-field stuff it might have been received better. There were some positives and Hoover High gained a lot of national recognition.

I know some people will never change their opinion of Rush yet I consider him a friend as I do his brother Phillip and his family who live in Hoover. I wish people would look at some positives along with negatives of a person then perhaps they won't be so quick to Rush to Judgment.

Coach Rush Propst had a record at Hoover High School of 115-12. His nine years at Hoover included 5 State of Alabama 6A Championships, Two Runner Up seasons, and one undefeated season.